Ascension of the immortal Asura

Whoosh!

The air parted rapidly as John flew through the lands of the Divine Martial Continent, his first such trip alone. John took the mission not only to burn some time before the Thunder Realm, but also learn a bit more about the Divine Martial Continent.

'According to the general sect information I read, the land for several thousand miles around the sect has been cleared of the very strong and aggressive beast threats, although some remain. The strongest seem to be in the Dao Transformation Realm, but are docile enough that if left alone will not attack cultivators unless provoked. As such, I should be relatively safe on this trip, but I shouldn't lower my guard.'

With his cultivation firmly in the Meridian Forging Realm, John was able to fly at hundreds of miles per hour, and his body carved a quick path through the air. The ground sailed by below him, as John took in all the sights.

Hundreds of smaller cities, villages, and sects dotted the landscape, nestled in the valleys between mountains, sprawled across vast expansive plains, and lined the large rivers that meandered through the land.

It was much more vibrant and alive than the Yuan Continent in terms of population, and it was quite uncommon for John to go a long stretch without seeing some sort of city.

The first hundred miles of his journey was incredibly uneventful, as it was also the safest area being so close to the sect. John's journey followed a massive river that meandered through the land, upon which the village he was heading to was located.

He spotted thousands of other cultivators flying through the air in all directions, either by their own power, or on the backs of beasts.

The river was several miles wide, and his divine sense was unable to pierce down to the bottom, revealing how deep it was. The river itself was brown, obscuring his vision as to what lurked within.

Splash!

While flying above the river, a large splash appeared before John, catching his attention. A fish jumped out of the river, its large body over ten yards long. John's eyes lit up upon seeing this fish, as he could tell that it was Meridian Forging realm fish, and would most likely be incredibly tasty.

His scythe appeared in his hands as he sped forward, and slashed out towards the fish with the intention of bisecting it in half.

Boom!

While the fish was in the air, another splash, far more explosive than the one caused by the first fish rocked the waters. John stopped just before he reached the fish as a massive creature violently surfaced from the water. It looked similar to a fish, but had large tentacles coming out from its head, like a lion's mane but made of tentacles. Just the head of the creature was thirty yards wide and long, shocking John greatly.

The tentacles grabbed the fish and forced it down its mouth as it swallowed the creature whole.

John quickly retreated as he watched the bizarre creature fall back below the waters, its body disappearing completely from sight. The river returned to its normal calm incredibly quickly, as if nothing had happened.

However, a nervous bead of sweat formed on John's temple as he backed away from the river's surface, and hovered over the riverbank instead.

"That was a Dao Transformation creature and must have been over a hundred yards long….if I had been caught up in its mouth, I would have been swallowed whole along with the fish. Who knows if I would be able to survive such a thing."

John shook his head at himself after a moment of silence, as he had truly been too bold in his actions. This new continent was incredibly powerful, and although the bizarre creature was not something that attacked humans, his life may have been lost regardless if he had been a bit more unlucky.

"I suppose I need to be a bit more careful while still being so weak, as a creature that strong could kill me without even meaning to. This continent truly is far above the Yuan Continent.'

A Dao Transformation beast was practically unheard of on the Yuan Continent, yet one had already popped up before John just hours after he left the safety of the Heavenly Lightning Sect. It truly was a night and day difference.

After such a close encounter with death, John decided to travel on the safer side. He hugged the riverbank instead of flying directly over the river, as he could easily see what laid in wait outside the river, while the murky river itself obscured the dangers below.

After changing his approach, the rest of his journey was rather uneventful. John occasionally spotted Heaven Tribulation realm beasts in the forests lining the river, as well as on the riverbank itself.

However, those beasts were quite docile, and ignored him completely as most basked in the warm sunlight.

As he travelled along the riverside, John came across dozens and dozens of cities that sprawled next to the river. The cities were quite massive, each larger than the largest cities on the Yuan Continent.

Most of the cities seemed to be port cities, focused on trading and business. However, each city seemed to contain at least one sect, which not only bolstered the strength of the city, but also served as protection from the local wildlife, as well as bandits.

None of the sects were as powerful as the Heavenly Lightning Sect, which was a hegemon within the surrounding ten thousand miles.

Ships travelled on the river to the ports of each city, slightly surprising John after experiencing the dangers of the river. However, he could feel powerful formation fluctuations emanating from the ships, revealing that they most likely had some sort of protection against the river's dangers.

The sun started to set over the horizon as John finally arrived at his destination, which bathed the area in a red tinge which was fading by the second. Flying several hundred yards above the ground, John spotted the village below, which rested alongside the river.